Angie Barger – Growing A Tea Garden With Kids: The Tea Garden Project

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Angie Barger – Growing A Tea Garden With Kids: The Tea Garden Project

Angie Barger

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longea

Hi plant folks!

I am excited to be with you virtually as springtime erupts here in Northern New England where I live. There are so many wild and well-tended herbs to bring into our lives to nurture our nervous system and whole body wellness. I look forward to continuing the learning journey with you. Today I am most interested in hearing your questions about wild edibles, wild medicinals and what healing herbs you grow and WANT to grow where you call home.

Join the Tea Project learning and effort on Instagram at @vtherbalist, on FB at Angie Barger, or tune into my youtube channel angie barger (lower case) to see realtime updates of wild herbs this spring.

Marjory Wildcraft

Hi Angie, so glad you are online today

I'm in Puerto Rico right now. Just curious if you are familiar with tropical anti-virals? Gosh, I also have Stepph Harrods book with me....

kchiarini

Hi, Angie. You were such a bright light of my day. Your heart and soul came through loud and clear in your presentation.

I am new to gardening, so I drank in all you said. Took lots of notes. I don't know anything about teas, and not much of a tea drinker myself, but I am open to that possibility. I may go as far as to buy the empty bags and give it a whirl. I was undecided which herbs I was going to grow, but I think I'll give lemon balm, garden sage, anise hyssop a try. I already have mint (who doesn't?), but I'm not sure what type of mint it is. It's the one that grows crazy, though maybe they all do. I know us Italians eat it with potatoes and string beans.

And I loved that woman that you quoted with those wonderful "suggestions". I have to go back and listen to that again. It was priceless.

Angie, I will definitely check out your website. If you don't mind, I may drop you a line with a question or two.

Thank you! You are a joy, and I look forward to seeing more of you in summits or wherever! And Marjory, your line up is incredible. I am getting more out of this summit than any other summit I've listened to. I'm really looking forward to hearing what Melissa Norris has to say. She's another one I connect with. I bet Angie and Melissa are friends!

With gratitude, Karen

sarahstolberg

Thank you for your talk, and I love your tea project 🙂 What setup have you found works best for enabling kids to make their own tea? My kiddo is 7, she has had her own tea box since she was 5, and we have tried various hot & cold infusions and various straining methods, but we haven't landed on one method we love. On her own, she goes straight to the store-bought cold brew herbal tea, not because of the flavor, but because it is the least complicated. As she's gardening more with me, I'd like her to feel more comfortable with the loose herbs. What would you recommend?

Chris

Gratitude is the key that unlocks the door of spirituality. Loved the presentation.

Angie Barger, The Tea Project

https://community.thegrownetwork.com/discussion/comment/860184#Comment_860184

Hi Marjory,

Wow, it's snowing on my garden today in VT- such a shift from the tropics! I only have a hunch about tropical anti-virals. When I consider the energetics of the ecosystem there, I am curious about exploring the bark of trees - imagining many viruses and fungi could decimate the bark in a tropical environment if they do not contain these secondary plant metabolites. I look forward to hearing what you discover!

Angie Barger, The Tea Project

https://community.thegrownetwork.com/discussion/comment/860237#Comment_860237

Hi Karen,

I'm so glad you enjoyed the presentation! I love working with herbs so much, you're spot on that it is in my heart and soul. As you start your journey growing herbs, it's helpful to remember that herbs are, essentially, weeds, though we often have a negative connotation for this word. If we were to put a positive spin on it, we'd realize this means they can be less fickle about when and where they grow, taking to nutrient poor soil in many cases! You will notice that lemon balm likes to grow in a nice, neat perennial hump, garden sage prefers bright sun and well-drained soil, and anise hyssop starts out so super small, but if left to its own devices over a course of three years, will likely establish a lovely patch from its volunteer seeds (if you leave some flowers to seed each year. This sounds like a very wise place to start!

I would love to hear from you, please email me or reach out on social media. And if you'd like to continue receiving this kind of information, subscribe to my newsletter and blog - just drop me a line. The blog is at: https://www.luna-root.com/blog-1

Looking forward to hearing more, Karen!

Angie

Angie Barger, The Tea Project

https://community.thegrownetwork.com/discussion/comment/860242#Comment_860242

Hi Sarah!

It's truly a joy for me, too! I will often have the children harvest and dry a really small amount of herbs, and make teabags out of the dried plant material in either muslin or disposable pre-made tea bags like these:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/652395675/100-non-woven-loose-tea-herb-bag-filter?ref=pla_similar_listing_top-1&frs=1

Then they have a little art project, it's great for gifts for others, and they can be stored in an airtight container for future use. I hope this is helpful ~~ it's also nice to sew a few little reusable muslin bags together for tea storage as well. Also, eating the herbs right outta the garden is a great way to invest time into the relationship with them. Happy harvesting!

Best,

Angie

Ruth Ann Reyes

Such a clever idea! Hmmm....I need to get my tea garden going!